Next time you’re feeling cynical or jaded surrounded by Christmas lights & holiday cheer, pretend for a minute you’re a ghost. You’ve come back from the dead. You can see the people who used to be in your life, but now they’re just in theirs. You can see, but you are not seen. It’s all still there, but it’s gone for you. How does that make you feel? Now come back. Stop pretending. You’re not a ghost. It’s not gone yet, whatever it is. How does that feel? Whatever it is, feel all of it.

“A Ghost Story for Christmas” is a beautiful, haunting tale by the saddest bard in town, Aidan Moffat (see: Arab Strap & The Most Important Place in the World) and Recovery-hero RM Hubbert.

From “Ghost Stories for Christmas”, out 7 December.

Quote the press release: “The fire is roaring, the chestnuts are roasting, the children are laughing – and it’s time to tell Ghost Stories for Christmas. These are the ghosts of love, haunting happy homes and fairy-lit bars; these are the ghosts of memory, of haunted mirrors, pagan festivities, and unforgettable friends.”